Liverpool suffered their fourth Premier League defeat of the season overnight when Sunderland won 1-0 with a Darren Bent goal that took a deflection from a beach ball thrown on the pitch by a visiting fan.

The incident came after five minutes at the Stadium of Light and is likely to remain a major talking point for some time.

Bent's shot from inside the box struck the large red beach ball, which had "Liverpool" emblazoned across it, and the match ball was clearly deflected away from goalkeeper Pepe Reina as well as making things awkward for defender Glen Johnson.

Liverpool's players protested but the goal was allowed to stand.

Pictures on Sky TV showed a young fan in the Liverpool section throwing the beach ball on the pitch and then looking particularly glum at halftime as he perhaps considered the consequences of his actions.

The rules state the referee has the option to allow play to continue if a "second ball" goes on to the field but should call a halt if it interferes with the action.

It also states he should stop the game in the case of "any kind of outside interference" but in reality matches are routinely allowed to continue with items like balloons on the pitch.

Former FIFA referee Graham Poll told the BBC the referee should have stopped the game and given a drop ball.